The Gerrard Chronicles 2002

AGFHS AACHEN XMAS MARKETS TRIP

This was the first tour organised by Ken, rather at the last minute in February(!), which meant we stayed at the Hotel Buschhausen on the Ring Road. However, it was very comfortable & only a ten minute drive by Derek, our Welsh driver, to the centre. To make up the numbers, our friends Michey & Alan, Barbara & Stuart came with us. One day was spent in Aachen, which had two markets & some unbombed attractive buildings to visit. A day to Cologne in horrendous traffic, where there were 6 markets but the last day was the best - to Kornelimünster & Monschau, enchanting villages & Monschau semed to be one vast market, nestling in a deep valley & pure Middle Ages. AGFHS web site, still maintained by Ken, on this link.

Aachen Xmas market

More about this trip on this link.

Peter Brauerei in Köln

Monschau from above

Lrft: Avis in a Kornelimünster antique shop Right:Crowds in Monshau

TRIPS TO MANCHESTER

There were several of these after the Xmas one, in January & March, including Pip's birthday...

Freddie & Pip

Freddie & Jason working out how a present works.

SAALBACH SKIING

This trip was delayed to March 2nd by Avis' cancer operation, so conditions were not as good as we are used to in January. While they did a tremendous job in keeping runs open, they could (& did) get slushy. However, we found enough practical snow to have a good trip & the Hotel Saalbacherhof was pretty good, if somehow, less than the sum of its parts. But the village itself is charming. The best pistes were 'down the back' to Leogang & the steep North-facing runs home.

Ken & Avis on the Reiterkogel
photo unknown Gerry

Getting thin above Vorder Glemm.
The white stuff is pretty slushy

Saalbach & the Schattberg
Nord run - the way home

KEN'S TWO-OBJECTIVE TRIP TO SWITZERLAND Ken flew to Geneva on June 25th with two objectives, firstly to climb Bella Tola, 3025m, which he had done 20 years before with his father but had inadequate photos. This time, he stayed outside Sierre before walking all the way up to the Bella Tola Hut, 6,000ft above & staying the night before walking up the hill the next day. Splendid photos this time (see this link) & he went on down to Gruben a different way. The rain forced him to walk back to the Rhone Valley via the scary Wasserleitung to Ergisch, where he thumbed a lift to Stalden....
Matterhorn & Dent Blanche from the Bella Tola path Full details on this link with splendid photos this time	Grächen More about Grächen on this link
...& walked up to Grächen, the start point for the strenuous high-level footpath to Zermatt, the Europaweg. This takes two days, with a stay at the Europahütte half way. The views are splendid, though. The route is more fully described on this link. A quiet day in Zermatt, walking up to Furi completed the trip. Ken's Alpine web site continues to be the most popular section of our own web stuff.	The Balfrin & Gross Bigerhorn from the Europaweg. See this link for the Balfrin

EDINBURGH FESTIVAL

Perhaps because everyone now obeys speed limits, we had a very smooth trip up the A1, over the A66 to Penrith & up the quiet A71. We were at the fag end of the festival but saw three operas, 'The Turn of the Screw', 'Siegfried' & 'Jerry Springer - the opera'. All very good, the last a hilarious vulgar romp but still, very much an opera. Other items were a Greek one-man show (ok), Neil Mullarkey as 'L. Vaughan Spencer - Don't be Needy, Be Succeedy', a take-off of management motivation courses & an excellent play for two by Carla Cantrelle called 'Looking Up' about a trapeze artist (her herself) & a barman. The attempted trip round Scotland was defeated on day two by the weather but we had pleasant stays in InverGarry & Oban.

Edinburgh

Holyrood House. We went round at last.

CARCASSONNE & CATHARS

On a whim, Ken booked this 'History Today' trip & tossed Avis a copy of 'The Perfect Heresy', so she would know all about it. The story of the trip is on this link, with lots of photos. Christian fruitcakes may find this offensive!

Right: Avis & Ken in the main gate into Carcassonne